No-one can refute a compliment, especially one given with such warmth. We all like to think we are appreciated and a little sweetness does not go amiss.’ She turned to Iraklios. ‘I’m flattered, sir. Thank you again.’
‘Spoken like a true beauty. Unaware of her impact on all around her. Humility is not always necessary, my dear.’ His eye caught the food on the table. ‘You haven’t touched a thing. Mrs Manto will have your heads on a platter.’ He took a plate and started to help himself, piling food on it. ‘Let me help you with this to save you from a harsh sentence.’ Then he sat down and gave an imperceptible nod to Elli. It was the signal to get onto the subject preoccupying them.
‘Katerina, I’ll be honest with you. I asked Iraklios to come. It was not a chance visit. I’ll tell you why. Earlier when your scarf slipped I could not help but notice the pendant with the attached cross hanging around your neck. May we see it up close, please?’
‘Yes, of course.’ Katerina acquiesced, an expression of puzzlement on her face. She moved her hands to undo the clasp.
‘Aristo, could you help her, please?’ Aristo had beaten her to it already and having undone the clasp, placed the pendant on the table.
‘Mother, uncle, what is all this about?’
‘We will explain in a while.’ Elli said as she took the pendant in her palm and stared at it, before handing it to Iraklios. He studied it carefully for a while in silence. The others did not break that silence and waited. Elli prodded Iraklios.
‘Iraklios?’
‘I believe this is the cross.’
Aristo became impatient. ‘Would you please tell us what’s going on?’
Elli nodded and looked at Iraklios.
‘Katerina, how did you come by this cross?’
‘It was given to me by my grandmother when I was twelve. Why?’
‘Did she tell you how she came to have it?’
‘She said it was her grandmother’s, and her grandmother’s grandmother’s before her and so on, that it had been a family tradition for the cross to be handed down from grandmother to granddaughter at the age of twelve and it has been so for many generations going back a few hundred years.’
‘Do you know exactly for how long?’
‘Not exactly Would you like to talk to my grandmother?’
‘Yes, we would. I would be grateful if you could arrange it.’
Aristo joined in. ‘But, Iraklios, won’t you tell us what it’s for? Why is the cross so important?’
‘That cross is not a usual cross. Look at it carefully.’
‘It looks valuable, but otherwise I don’t see anything special about it.’
‘If it is what we believe it is, that cross has a story. That cross was a gift to each newborn heir to the throne of Constantinople and we have evidence in historical accounts that shows drawings of that same cross.’
Katerina looked puzzled. ‘But couldn’t anyone who had seen those drawings or the cross itself have reproduced the design?’
‘It is possible, I suppose, and that’s why we need to speak with your grandmother. She may be able to shed light on this matter. But for verification we will need the cross to be examined by an expert, an archaeologist who specialises in this period and more specifically the Palaiologos dynasty and the last Emperor.’
Elli knew the answer. The thought passed through Katerina’s mind as well, but at that moment did not properly register. ‘Katerina, I think your brother would be the right person to examine the cross and confirm this.’
‘Giorgos?’ Katerina was still confused. ‘Yes, of course. You are right. But would he not have mentioned something about it all these years? After all I have been wearing it in full view for sixteen years.’ Katerina said, her tone pregnant with doubts, and a strange feeling of guilt she couldn’t shake, as if she did something wrong and she had to fix it.
She looked at Elli with eyes full of unanswered questions, hoping for a satisfactory explanation, for help to extricate herself from her predicament.
Elli saw Katerina’s suddenly furrowed brow and felt a bit uneasy for worrying this lovely young woman sitting opposite her, only a few minutes earlier relaxed and nonchalant making pleasant conversation. She wanted to try and put Katerina’s mind at some rest at least.
‘It is possible that he never paid real attention. He must have seen it just for what it was, a cross, a gift from your grandmother, a family heirloom. Like when we don’t notice something that is under our nose, perhaps it was the same with this and the thought never crossed his mind.’
‘But he’s always been extraordinarily observant and inquisitive. He would have asked to study it closely.’
‘Not necessarily. He must have become so accustomed to the sight of it that his curiosity was not aroused.’
‘It sounds plausible. I’ll call him and arrange a meeting. But Elli and Iraklios, you are not interested in it solely for its historical significance.’
Iraklios explained. ‘No. If it is what we believe it is, it could be the one worn by the last heir at the time of the fall of Constantinople in 1453. Almost four weeks before the fall of the city, the heir, a child of three years old at the time, was kidnapped from the Palace of Vlachernae. He was never found, nor was a body ever discovered. Nobody ever found out what happened to him. And he was, probably, wearing this cross when he disappeared.’
At the same time, at his apartment in Athens, Giorgos was on the phone to James Calvell in New York.
‘Giorgos, I’ve got the information we wanted.’
‘Already?’
‘I told you the guy was a genius.’
‘Well?’
‘I think he may have made a mistake. I’ll ask him to run the program again. It must have a bug or something.’
‘James, don’t play games. Just tell me. Come out with it.’
‘Giorgos, the donor of both icons was Ariana Paresteris.’
‘What? But that’s my grandmother’s name. It can’t be. It must be a coincidence.’
‘Giorgos, I’ve asked him to dig deeper. There’s no doubt. It was your grandmother.’
‘But how? It can’t be. It just can’t.’
‘Why not? Why do you find it so hard to believe?’
‘I don’t know. I guess I’m just surprised, that’s all.’
‘What will you do now?’
‘I need to speak to her. I need to see her. I need to know. Now. James, thank you. I have to go. I’ll call you in a couple of days.’
‘Alright. Call me, if you need anything else. I’ll help you with this.’
‘Yes, I know. I will call you in a couple of days when I will know more. I’ve got a feeling there’s more to this story. James, I just had a thought. The icon, the Imperial ring. Do you think all this may be connected to my project?’
‘It’s very possible.’
‘My God, do you know what this means? James, I have to go. You are a good friend. Speak to you later.’
Giorgos was on the first flight out of Athens Eleftherios Venizelos International Airport. He landed at Larnaca International Airport shortly after seven in the evening and took a taxi straight to Limassol and his grandmother’s house.
It was just before nine o’clock at night when Giorgos found himself knocking on his grandmother’s front door. She opened the door herself and, hiding her initial surprise, her face opened up with a huge smile for her grandson. She pulled him into the entrance hall and into her arms and they exchanged kisses.
‘My darling Giorgos. It’s so good to see you. When did you get back to Cyprus? And what are you doing here at this time?’
